Crowns
by Turtle's Chopsticks
Summary: He couldn't wear any crowns except the ones she made him. Oneshot. This is a story to test the waters and see if anyone wants it to continue.


FFVIII

Crowns

You can thank Stained and their song Blown Away for this fic. The paragraph concerning compliments I made from a quote on quotegarden.

Disclaimer: Do you really think I own the characters? Sorry to disappoint but I don't.

Sum: The only crowns he would wear were the ones she made.

It was one of the few memories that he had never lost. Others less important ones were lost, like voices on the wind, during that time of the war and during the time that followed. The memories of the others disappeared and that didn't bother him. When hers started to fade he made himself save that little part of him. The good part. They only good part left.

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She never had been able to make a flower crown to save her life. Ellone could finish one in five minutes and Rinoa took longer but hers were perfect. Selfie had never had the patients to sit still long enough. And Quistis. She always had to find the perfect flowers and there were never enough of those. So the ones she did pick always ended up in little jam jars that Matron scattered throughout the house.

When he first made fun of her lack of skill in that area she had kicked sand at him and marched down to the beach in a huff of bruised pride. He feeling abandoned had gone to find a suitable target for his boredom. Zell had provided hours of entertainment. He forgot all about flower crowns and the little girl who couldn't make them.

Matron's call for supper had grabbed Zell from Seifers' claws and he planned on shoving the shorter boys' teddy bear up in the lighthouse before dark. But Quistis hadn't shown up at Matrons call. Not even at Elones' shout did she come. Matron and Elone started to worry due to the darkening skies and falling temperatures. Matron had put all the children at the table and had told Elone that she was in charge.

To the children Elone was second only to Matron. They would never dispute her authority so when Matron did this none objected or disagreed with the edict she gave for all of them to stay at the table until they were done. Selfie and Zell finished first and zoomed off to get ready for bed. Then Squall left finished with his food and having no desire to dawdle. Irvine and Rinoa were next. Only Seifer and Elone remained. Elone had started to clean up the kitchen and was washing up their utensils. Seifer remained at the table playing with his food and a frown clinching his brow.

The young boy was extremely worried for he believed it was his fault Quistis wasn't coming back. That the fact was mostly true didn't occur to him. If it had he would have also gone searching regardless of anything Matron said. Even though he picked on her all the time didn't mean that he wanted her gone. He feared her leaving in the way many young children feared having no light when they sleep. She was a constant and necessary for beating back the boredom and the aloneness that occur when you don't have someone who understands at least a small part of you.

So he mutilated his salad and made a mound of his food. When the mound was built and shortly before he started trying to reorganize his food Matron walked in, Quistis balanced on her hip. He leapt down from his chair and jogged over to make sure she was ok. Aside from grass stains on her hands she appeared untouched even though she wouldn't look at him. Matron carried Quistis to her chair and pulled her warmed plate from the oven. Seifer had followed them back to the table like a lost little puppy.

He still wasn't entirely assured that she was unhurt but when she started to attack her plate he went back to his own chair to finish his. Or at least that was his intention. He had never liked it when his food touched and the mound on his plate couldn't mix anymore than it had. The girl to his right wasn't even looking up from her plate and refused to meet his gaze even when he elbowed her. If he hadn't ticked her off she would of traded plates with him in an instant. As it was that wasn't likely. When pushed to far she held grudges like no one else. He had a feeling this was one of those times. He would have to use the last trick up his sleeve.

He did a quick glance around the room and was relieved to find the room empty except for them. He would never let Ellone hear this nor Matron, for that matter. He leaned over on his chair until he was sure she could see him and hear his whisper. "Sorry." She acted as though she didn't care or didn't hear and kept staring at her plate. So he leaned in closer until his head was near her elbow as her hand rested on the table. "I said I am sorry." She continued to ignore him and he wiggled a little bit closer in his seat.

Then gravity took over and he fell to the floor with a thump. He held the side of his head where it had hit her chair seat with his eyes clamped shut in pain. It took all his focus not to start crying but when the pain had eased a bit he heard an odd sound. Almost like crying in nature but with none of the grief. When he cracked his eyes open he saw the little girl who had ignored his attempted apology shaking in nearly silent laughter. Her face was bright red and she clutched her sides.

His face went from wincing to sullen his pain forgotten. "You think this is funny do you?!" She trembled still as she shook her head in response. "Liar. Well you just wait I'll lock you in the cupboard next chance I get." It wasn't his threat that calmed her laughter but the way his voice sounded. It sounded like it had the first day he had been there: lost, alone, and determined to take his feelings out on others.

She stretched her arm along the table and switched their plates so he had her orderly plate. "I'm sorry for laughing at you." It was true of course for he hadn't taught her the skill of lying to others yet. Her action was an acceptance of his apology which she hadn't been planning to take without some sort of bartering of terms.

This system of give and take was the only way they knew how to deal with each other. When he had first arrived Eda had thought that they were opposites but this was not so. They were compliments. Split nearly down the middle 49 to 51. Each was always trying to change the balance; to win back what they had lost for neither could accept defeat or a tie. Until they pushed to far that is.

Then it turned to begging and bargains. The 'winner' in these cases had the worst of it. They had screwed up and they had to fix it. And it was his turn this time but he had yet to offer anything more than his apology. Even after he had risen from the floor, sat back down in his chair and they had finished their meal he didn't beg. Ellone had come in at that point and told them to run along to bed. It was the easiest time she had ever had getting Seifer to go to bed on time.

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The next morning had dawned grey and cloudy. It was a typical day for that time of year. Matrons' call for breakfast had pulled Quistis from beneath her covers to run to get some of the fresh pancakes they had on Thursdays. All of the children had arrived within second of hearing her call except Seifer. It made Ellone go back to the boys' room in order to make sure he wasn't hiding in dreamland. The pancakes were distributed and bacon too. Ellone came back and juice was poured.

Looking a little damp from the dew Seifer walked through the kitchen doorway and plopped down in the last available seat between Zell and Selfie. He got the most burnt of the pancakes and bacon but he didn't seem to notice. Even when Matron said "You nearly missed breakfast, Seifer." he merely shrugged. None of the other children really noticed. Not even Quistis who was well and truly ignoring his presence. Even though he was the last to come to the table Seifer was the first to finish and dart back outside.

No one noticed that he disappeared for a few hours until he came back. He walked up to the little girl making castles on the beach and tugged a pigtail. She turned around a scowl on her face and a water filled bucket in her hand. Matron watched as the spoke for a moment before the girl stood up and cautiously followed the boy. The beach was filled with children enjoying end of summer pursuits.

Then a blond headed streak ran across the sand without looking back even when the little girl chasing him started screaming bloody murder. Atop the little girls head was a crown made of seaweed and shells. They raced passed her sand castle and she grabbed her water bucket. With an aim that spoke of practice she chucked the container at his head. He fell getting a mouthful of sand and then the wind knocked out of him when she jumped on him back effectively pinning him to the ground. He spat and thrashed trying to free himself. When that failed miserably he laid still and waited for his punishment.

The girl sat in the center of his back and fiddled with the 'crown' she had taken off her head. It hadn't come apart in their mad dash across the sands and unlike flower crowns it had no real beauty. The shells were a nice touch but most had fallen out leaving only two in the very front looking very much like horns. With that thought she placed it on his head and adjusted it so the horns faced forward.

He struggled a bit more in hopes that she was distracted but that wasn't the case. She pinched his ear and he calmed enough to put his hands under his head and wait for what ever she had to say. It didn't take long before she spoke, "I'll forgive you for making fun of my flower crowns if you teach me how to make these. Ok?" It was one of their easiest bargains and he agreed almost instantly. She let him up and he showed her where he had been making them: the light house.

The day had passed and by nightfall they were allies again. She walked back wearing the first crown he made and he had hers on his head (She had made it to big for her own). Matron had smiled upon seeing them. She knew that this friendship would last no matter how tough times got no matter how much they offended each other. Her crown sat easy on his brow and they seashell horns would never be permanent. He would never willing let her leave for her crowns were the only ones he could accept with out breaking them and without the crowns breaking him.

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A/N: That's it. Please Review and I may post a follow up sometime this year…maybe. I hope you liked it.

I enjoyed writing it and I have something that takes place a few years after the game plotted as a follow up. You can see kind of where it takes place in the first paragraph. You may eventually see it. Depends when I get off my rear. As of now this is and will remain a one shot.


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